• Creating A Resource Place

Posted by: kidhelper on Wednesday, April 27th, 2011

Creating Your  Resource Place

As I have moved around churches I have observed how many churches have created places to keep resources for the teachers and workers. The variety has ranged from whole rooms designated as the Resource Center (Room) to an organized Resource Closet, to a set of labeled plastic-stack boxes in the Kidmin Office. Every department or every building could have designated resource areas. However, one common or central place avoids a lot of duplication.

As your ministry grows the more you need this Resource Place. The more your team grows, the more they need these Resources.

What should be included in  your Resourced Place?

Supplies: construction paper, tape, tempura paints, scissors, colored pencils, crayons, glue, pens and pencils, chalk and erasers, roll paper to cover tables, clean-up supplies.

Craft Supplies of all sorts for Sunday school, VBS and club programs. You can get carried away here, there are so many options, but start with what you can use, not just collect. These can be new and used items.

Equipment: a copy machine for teachers, a paper cutter, easels, flannel boards, pocket charts, etc.

Visual aids Flannel graph, teaching pictures, visual stories, visual songs, paper pads, marking pens, object lessons, even materials for bulletin boards and displays.

Curriculum (of all types) can be stored and distributed from here, if you have the space.  Games, stories could be included too.

Media resources TV’s, camera, easels, recorders, projectors, flannel boards, film projector, DVD players, screens, etc.

Recreational equipment if your program has a gym, these resources might be kept there in another separate place. Some items that can be used in the classroom would be appropriate to start.

Here are My Ten Suggestions to help you create your Resource Place.

1. Look again at your present facilities to determine just where a designated resource area could be. Consider your options of how to secure that space , if it is currently not available. A small starter place just might get you going until you gather more resources.

2. Prepare a good list of what you would like to include in your Resource area. From that list determine what can be purchased and what can be donated. Many from your congregation would be all too happy to provide exactly what you need, new or used, if you are willing to ask them.

3. Add the Resource Center (or whatever you call it) to your active Job Description. Determine to expand this area of your ministry on an annual basis.

4. Include the Resource Center as a line item in your Kidmin budget. If you are beginning, start small and ask for donations. Purchase the most strategic things that the most will use right away. Project your budget growth to be compatible with your numeric growth of your children and your volunteer staff.

5. Consider recruiting a Resource Manager to manage these resources, even creating a check-out system on Sunday morning, or if your program warrants it, at other program times too, if necessary.

6. Create an inventory of all the resources that you have. Note some resources are only used once a year, other resources are used more randomly, still other resources are used frequently, and some resources are consumed—needing to be replaced. Knowing what to have on hand is a challenge, but having someone oversee your resources could help you get a handle on this.

7. Review your current resources to evaluate what you are using and what you are not using. Churches tend to store resources that are quite dated and have little or no use in your current ministry. If you have not used it in five years, consider moving it elsewhere, thus, eliminating it from your Resource Area.

8. Visit a few churches in your area to get some ideas of what others have done with their designated resource areas. Sometimes these visits provide lots of ideas and simple solutions to organizing and managing your resources.

9. Create opportunities for your available resources to be used. Sometimes, your teachers need to be reminded what resources are available there. So notify your teachers they can find these craft supplies (or whatever) in the Resource Center. Promote the Resource Room. All new teachers get the free tour.

10. Some churches make the Resource Room the Hub. All their Sunday morning teachers check in there, before going to class. They not only can pick up a cup of coffee and something to eat, but they can check their box for morning announcements from the Kidmin, pick up their needed supplies, and catch any last minute input about what is happening that day. Make something happen there.

 

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